Saturday, 19 May 2007

Stonyhurst's Royal Relics

There are also some fine royal treasures. Firstly, this stunning chasuble commissioned by Henry VII for use in Westminster Abbey. They were used for state occasions and taken over to France for the Field of the Cloth of Gold (1520), when Henry VIII met Francis I outside Calais. The original set of 29 vestments was mostly destroyed at the Reformation, but a cope and chasuble survive at Stonyhurst.

This Book of Hours was printed at Lyons in 1558 for Mary Tudor - note the Tudor badges of the rose and pomegranite on the cover. It then passed to another Mary - the Queen of Scots - and she took this book with her to the scaffold in 1586, where she recited the Little Office of Our Lady:

This frame contains assorted Jacobite relics - including the flesh of James II, part of the waistcoat he was wearing when he died and the blood of the Jacobite 'martyr,' Lord Derwentwater:

There is a Stuart Room at the College, with some charming Jacobite portraits, including this one of Maria Clementina, the mother of Bonnie Prince Charlie:

Finally, a fine binding showing the arms of the Cardinal Duke of York (the bicentenary of whose death we'll be marking in July):

Thanks to Jan Graffius, Stonyhurst's dynamic curator, for letting me use the photos I took during my tour.

Father, I am particularly glad to see the mention of the Cardinal Duke of York - Henry IX & I (the bicentenary of whose death we'll be marking in July): specifically, Friday, July 13th.Will you be offering Holy Mass that day for the repose of his soul? I know several "Jacobites", Catholic and non-Catholic, who would wish to honour his memory in this way.

Hello Father Nicholas, i have found your blog when searching for info on the Stonyhurst vestments, I am studying the history of embroidery for a C&G Diploma. I have found some contradictory info regarding a funeral pall that is supposedly to commemorate Henry VII and acording to one source is held by the Fitzwilliam Museum (I have yet to ascertain the validity of that). There seems some confusion from info I have found about a funeral pall known as the Fayrey Pall. I wonder if you have come across this in any of your investigations..... any help would be most appreciated!

Thanks for visiting the blog - I'm afraid I'm no expert and can't enlighten you on the subject. I encourage you to contact the curator at Stonyhurst, if you haven't done so already. Good luck with your diploma.